Nothing is for free when it comes to demons…a fact that Gwendolyn LaRoux finds out the hard way when she summons Laish, a minor demon from the Shadow Lands to help her cook up a little black magic. Unfortunately black magic has a way of growing and soon Gwendolyn finds herself drowning in darkness. Still, she’s determined to clean up her own mess. But when a creature from the Abyss enters our world and threatens her beloved grandmother, Gwendolyn has to admit she needs help—which means summoning the infuriating Laish, even though she swore never to call on him again.

Answering Gwendolyn’s incantations in a moment of boredom was a mistake for a demon who keeps what little heart he has left under lock and key. Laish immediately fell for the Creole beauty with jade green eyes and creamy, café au lait skin and now he’s determined to have her—no matter what the cost. And thanks to Gwendolyn’s sticky dilemma, the price just went up.

When it turns out that the intrepid witch must travel through the Shadow Lands and close the door she left open to the Pit, she knows at once she can’t make the dangerous journey on her own. Of course Laish is more than willing to act as her escort and bodyguard…for a not-so-small fee. Gwendolyn doesn’t want to use her body as a bargaining chip but the lustful demon will accept no other form of currency. And since her grandmother’s life is at stake, she has no choice. Little by little she must give in to his demands.

As Gwendolyn and Laish travel further and further into the interior of Hell, will he be able to keep her safe? And will she be able to keep her innocence? Or with they lose themselves and each other among the… Ruby Shadows?

Ruby Shadows is the third book in the erotic Born to Darkness series and it's a book that I, along with many others, have been chomping at the bit to get my hands on! I've adored this fresh paranormal series with its mixture of vampires, werewolves, and witches and now with the third book, we get to see just how demonic a Prince of Hell can really be! Gwendolyn is a witch who was featured as a supporting character in previous books and if honest, I didn't really warm to her at first. In Ruby Shadows though, we see a whole new side to her and as her background is fleshed out it's easy to see why she has made the choices she has. One such choice involved summoning a minor Demon to help her with a little vengeance spell, but when Laish showed up, he turned out to be so much more than Gwendolyn had ever expected! Now Gwendolyn is in serious trouble as when she helped save her friend, Taylor, a very small door was left open into the Abyss and a particularly nasty Hell-spawn has locked onto Gwendolyn's scent. She needs to travel into the Pit one more time but to do that, needs help and there's only one Demon who seems keen, and yes, you've guessed it, it's the infuriating and totally hot Laish! Laish has longed to taste the beautiful witch since he first saw her, but she refused his advances at every turn. Now though, she needs to travel through his world but there are no shortcuts through Hell and there's always a price to pay. Whilst Laish has no wish for the pretty witch to totally lose her soul, he does know that losing a little of her innocence is the price Gwendolyn will have to pay. The closer to the Pit, the higher the price to be paid and this is one type of tax that really is sinful! I loved this story and was completely surprised by just how much I warmed to Gwendolyn, who if honest, I previously found a touch abrasive. In Ruby Shadows, we learn how hard it is for her and just how lonely her life has been. Laish is a revelation and as I read the book, the clues were there to follow but it just made the ending that much sweeter.

I really liked that Ms Anderson allows her characters to be imperfect and perhaps make mistakes at times, as it's their flaws that make them feel more realistic. Gwendolyn is one such character but her bravery redeems her in my opinion. As for my opinion on Laish, well he's intelligent, very protective, totally hot (read the book!) and everything you could want in a book boyfriend! Add in some very erotic scenes and it's a wonderful way to lose yourself in a fabulous paranormal world and there's even a hint of what's to come next.

Romance, humour and adventure and highly recommended I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.